Butch Harmen advice yesterday

[Rlburnside]

With many players hitting woods of the tee at the Ryder Cup I was surprised to hear Butch Harmen saying the way to play a wood of the tee is to hit down on it.

I thought the way to play a wood of the tee was to play it a little forward of middle of your stance and hit it slightly on the up.

Any thoughts.

 

[Foxholer]

With many players hitting woods of the tee at the Ryder Cup I was surprised to hear Butch Harmen saying the way to play a wood of the tee is to hit down on it.

I thought the way to play a wood of the tee was to play it a little forward of middle of your stance and hit it slightly on the up.

Any thoughts.

I think that applies to Drivers - where the priority is distance.

For FWs from tee it's about placing it in the best position - on the fairway! So maximising distance takes a back seat and maximising control comes to the fore! The 'additional' backspin helps control, providing it's not too much.

I'm pleased I 'naturally' hit FWs off the tee the way he recommends.

 

[duncan mackie]

He was specifically talking about fairway woods and hybrids, and referencing Garcia's approach - which includes teeing it low as well.

Basically it was a response to the tee it up and let it fly shots that were resulting in long, but dangerous, shots for too many players.

Personally I'm not really sure what his real audience is for that advice! Most handicap golfers would benefit mist from swinging within themselves at realistic target distances, rather than less club then kill it approaches!

 

[Rlburnside]

I think that applies to Drivers - where the priority is distance.

For FWs from tee it's about placing it in the best position - on the fairway! So maximising distance takes a back seat and maximising control comes to the fore! The 'additional' backspin helps control, providing it's not too much.

I'm pleased I 'naturally' hit FWs off the tee the way he recommends.

Harmon wasn't talking about drivers with this advice it was fairway woods, all the tips I've seen are different to what he was saying.

 

[Foxholer]

Harmon wasn't talking about drivers with this advice it was fairway woods, all the tips I've seen are different to what he was saying.

Sorry, my first point might have been a little confusing. It was Drivers (not FWs!) I was talking about when mentioning hitting it 'on the up.

It may simply be the thought of hitting down (or up) on a FW as teeing it low(-ish) still allows a tiny bit of 'up'. Swing also depends on the 'depth of face' of the FW as this affects tee height for the type of swing - and ball position. Years ago, Adams produced a number of different (an numbered) styles - from 2080 to 8020 - with each pair representing percentage of use off tee versus from fairway.

 

[Rlburnside]

Sorry, my first point might have been a little confusing. It was Drivers (not FWs!) I was talking about when mentioning hitting it 'on the up.

It may simply be the thought of hitting down (or up) on a FW as teeing it low(-ish) still allows a tiny bit of 'up'. Swing also depends on the 'depth of face' of the FW as this affects tee height for the type of swing - and ball position. Years ago, Adams produced a number of different (an numbered) styles - from 2080 to 8020 - with each pair representing percentage of use off tee versus from fairway.

What position do you put your ball when hitting a 3/5 wood off the tee?

What h/c do you play off? maybe good advice for let's say a decent player but for my standard playing off 19 I would find it hard not to tee the ball forward in stance

 

[Foxholer]

What position do you put your ball when hitting a 3/5 wood off the tee?
...

A little forward of centre

...What h/c do you play off? maybe good advice for let's say a decent player but for my standard playing off 19 I would find it hard not to tee the ball forward in stance

A deteriorating (age and artritis related) 9.

Not sure whether handicap has anything to do with ball position - apart from level of confidence. I'd suggest you try practicing (lots) hitting FW off a decent (not bald) mat - not a tee. Easier to start with a 5W if available. It's really just a case of being confident, which really only comes about with practice.

 

[Rlburnside]

A little forward of centre



A deteriorating (age and artritis related) 9.

Not sure whether handicap has anything to do with ball position - apart from level of confidence. I'd suggest you try practicing (lots) hitting FW off a decent (not bald) mat - not a tee. Easier to start with a 5W if available. It's really just a case of being confident, which really only comes about with practice.

I'm maybe confusing the issue a tad, I'm confident enough hitting 3/5 of the tee so no problem there, it's just the issue of hitting down on the ball as opposed to hitting it on the up, I think I tee the ball slightly farther forward than you, but I'm finding it hard to follow how you can hit down on the ball when it's positioned forward in your stance.

 

[Foxholer]

...I think I tee the ball slightly farther forward than you, but I'm finding it hard to follow how you can hit down on the ball when it's positioned forward in your stance.

I sway! Years of (Sricks Rulle grass!) hockey that was instantly identifiable by the 1st Pro who saw my swing! Might even have been Doon!!

 

[Rlburnside]

 

[jusme]

I'm maybe confusing the issue a tad, I'm confident enough hitting 3/5 of the tee so no problem there, it's just the issue of hitting down on the ball as opposed to hitting it on the up, I think I tee the ball slightly farther forward than you, but I'm finding it hard to follow how you can hit down on the ball when it's positioned forward in your stance.

I can see this advice making sense....my ball is also a little forward but as opposed to other i like to see my fairway woods and hybrids as middle of my stance, not the ball. I place the club in the middle which results in the ball being a little forward from middle and it works well for me. I only swing different for my driver. As opposed to most good advice, my swing on fairway woods and hybrids are no different to my irons

 

[clubchamp98]

If you want to see good fairway play watch Sergio , he takes a small divot with his woods.
The bottom of your arc on the floor the ball should be just forward of that.

 

[bobmac]

I don't think you can compare tour pros with your average amateur when it comes to swing speed.

 

[duncan mackie]

I'm maybe confusing the issue a tad, I'm confident enough hitting 3/5 of the tee so no problem there, it's just the issue of hitting down on the ball as opposed to hitting it on the up, I think I tee the ball slightly farther forward than you, but I'm finding it hard to follow how you can hit down on the ball when it's positioned forward in your stance.

You seem to be suggesting that any ball played from mid stance or forward in the stance will be hit on the up....this simply isn't the case.
As long as the hands still lead the clubface through impact it's their position that dictates the bottom of the arc.
Personally I play all my normal shots, except driver, from just inside my forward heel...and have no difficulty fist making contact with the turf in front of the ball. I don't believe I'm alone!
However there's a whole other element here, as Bob alludes. Few handicap golfers will play a 3 wood from the fairway without touching the ground...or cold topping it. Tour professional can play a full 3 wood, cleanly, from a concrete path without any contact at all...evidenced a few years ago by Kevin Na for those disbelievers!

 

[Lord Tyrion]

I was given this advice by a pro just a few weeks ago. I am a natural sweeper, not by choice, but he was trying to get me to hit down with my hybrid and 5 wood. 'Let the loft of the club face do its job'. I'm trying very hard to do this and so far it is giving me better strike consistency and a nicer ball flight. Hard to reverse years of the wrong thing though........

 

[Foxholer]

...Hard to reverse years of the wrong thing though........

I's wasn't wrong! This is just a bit better!

 

[Orikoru]

I always thought that while you hit up with the driver, strike down with irons, fairway woods would be somewhere in between so you're hitting it pretty much level and sweeping it off the ground.